Moortown Golf Club, Leeds

Taken from the 17th looking over the 2nd & 5th

Moortown golf club, Leeds
Sunday 20 October 2013
Tee time - 1407
Green Fee - £45
Score - 84 (par 71)

Tucked away out of view you find your way to the course down a carefully manicured hedge way drive.

Host of the 1929 Ryder Cup, the moment you enter the clubhouse the lobby is steeped in historical images of faces to shape the face of golf. Notably is one of Samuel Ryder who donated the famous golf trophy for the 1929 competition.

The locker room is a timepiece with quality lockers that have had a fair amount of wear but have stood the test of time.

While I didn't explore the rest of the club house I did notice the 'smoking room' which i wouldn't like to guess if still in use with the laws in place! I am not really into doing the 'jacket and tie' thing in order to eat in the clubhouse as while I appreciate tradition, it's not really my bag.

The pro shop gave me a very warm welcome and offered me access to the range to warm up prior to my round. The practice range itself is an open piece of land running down the left hand side of the 1st hole with opportunity to knock balls off the deck or from the AstroTurf mats provided.

The putting green was pretty in its setting behind the starters hut but unfortunately didn't reflect the course greens.

This was the first heathland course that I had played and I was surprised by how bouncy the ground was which is due to it being laid on a peat base.

The rough around the course at the time was fairly tame due to the start of the winter preparations being started around the course and leaking one off the tee didn't tend to get you into too much trouble. The heather was out and a very pretty addition to the course in the autumn sunshine.

Hole numbers 2 and 9 had been so heavily dressed with red sand that when initially looking from the 2nd gave the illusion not to hit your ball onto it (which I duly didn't). While I understand this was part of the winter schedule I have never seen this before and felt like you were playing a bunker shot off the fairway!



The 3rd green - Moortown golf club

Hole number 4 was a very picturesque par-3 into a 2 club wind with bunkers protecting the green around the front and sides. 

 

 

Hole 10 named 'Gibraltar' was very apt. A 170-yard par-3 to an elevated green protected heavily on the left side by an enormous bunker. Additionally the green banked steeply from back to front to remove anything coming up short. Played into strong wind again I hit a perfect draw to within 20 feet but above the hole. I was able to tickle my putt down the hill into the centre of the cup for a birdie two. 

Hole 12 being a dogleg downhill par-5 was one of the easier holes on the course yet I managed to push it on to the 11 fairway. Somehow I get within 4 feet only the hole for 3 and rolled in my putt for another birdie. 

While I have only described a few of the holes, they all had a lot of variance and character. The course was open but had trees and hazards in certain places to create trouble for bad shots.

I loved that the greens were so soft that you could be aggressive in your approach and fire it straight at the flag as your ball would generally stick. The putting surface was excellent and incredibly smooth to putt on. This was despite the fact they were all spiked and you like the opportunity to see them at their peak in the summer. That said I wasn't putting well at all and left plenty of shots out there which certainly had the potential for a sub-80 round. 

The bunkers had great shape to them; they were well kept and had what I considered to be the right consistent depth of sand. The round is ended by a lovely approach into number 18 which is overlooked by the clubhouse

Overall feel of the course was a very enjoyable one. The players on the course (all of which were members) were very pleasant and considering I was a single ball, I was always invited to play through even without asking. 

Value for money was very good. I played on a Sunday afternoon in a twilight tee time. The course was well into its winter schedule but still in great nick. 

 
I highly recommend this course all year round. The members are very polite and proud to show off their course. Well worth a visit. 

Yorkshire & Lincolnshire tour - October 2013

Back in October last year my wife was 4 months pregnant and in need of a break from the daily stresses of work. In addition to this my mother-in-law had been talking about the wish to get away for a week somewhere sunny. While I was also in desperate need of a weeks rest, I agreed with Mrs W that she should go and get some sun with her mum and I'll go and play some golf. While not really our usual arrangement it would be a good break for the both us - although not great being apart for a week.

I was also eager to knock off a couple of courses off my list and knew there were a few in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire which were not normally in an area where I would have any need to visit.

After adding a couple of courses I decided to go all out and do five courses in five days plus a social game on day 6. Initially a mate was willing to do it with me but work commitments held him back. However I was perfectly happy have some good thinking time to myself.

I had booked up some cheap hotels and planned all my journeys so that generally they were done after my round of golf so not to arrive jaded at the first tee and risk ruining my experience.

Here was my itinerary for the week;

Sunday - Moortown golf club, Leeds
Monday - Woodhall Spa, Hotchkin course
Tuesday - Ganton Golf Club, Scarborough
Wednesday - Lindrick golf club, Worksop
Thursday - Notts golf club (Hollinwell), Mansfield
Friday - Social game with friends at Staverton Golf Club, Daventry



Yorkshire and Lincolnshire tour - October 2013

 

The individual blogs for these courses are to follow.

Woburn Golf Club - The Marquess

Having been a local to Woburn throughout my life, it has always been a club of much interest and one that in my eyes holds so much beauty. Woburn golf club has 3 championship courses – the Duke’s, the Duchess and the Marquess. On a number of occasions I have visited the club when professional competitions have been held there and walked the fairways admiring the towering pines of the Dukes course.

I was brought up to appreciate the value of money and when it comes to such places as top 100 golf venues, it wasn’t exactly top of the list whereby my parents would shell out the funds to play it. To be honest I would never have expected them to do so either!

I do now find myself fortunate to have a good career that pays well; however not so much that Woburn is a regular round - quite the contrary at upwards of £150/round.

One of the aims of playing the top 100 courses is to do it at a reasonable cost and where possible take benefit from playing with members and twilight rounds etc. Especially considering playing the top 100 with green fees alone will be over £13k let alone travel and accommodation! On this occasion I was fortunate to play with a friend who had contacts who obtained a round at a sensible rate.

Although I had visited the club, I had never been into the clubhouse. This is because the courses spread out over the woods are open to walk to the general public and it is not uncommon to see golfers out with their dogs attached to their golf trollies. From the outside the club house does not give away a lot. A brick built structure with a glass atrium seems quite understated for a club that boasts 3 championship courses. When you walk through to the reception, it is decked out with no expense spared. There is a lovely chandelier in the entrance made from deer antlers (no doubt recovered from the woods over the years). The reception desk is set in front of a large slate clad structure that rises up to the atrium above and provides a very warm yet modern feel.

It is was good to find a pro shop that actually stocked golf clubs as they tend to be a dying convenience due to being out priced by the internet and large outlets. Mind you I wouldn't purchase much more than a course planner due to the eye watering prices in there!

On checking our party in at the pro shop we proceeded to have a bacon sarnie in the Bloomsbury room which is for use by all. There is a member’s bar tucked away for the privileged!

While not a particularly large clubhouse for a club this size, it was plenty adequate and was immaculate throughout.

After breakfast we picked up our buggy which was spotless. We racked up the bags and headed out to the putting area. I don't usually have a buggy as I prefer to walk, however one of our party members would have struggled with the distance hence we had one on this occasion.

 

The Marquess has its own putting area to the Dukes and Duchess and I knew that the course was looking to be a challenge going by the slopes installed to the putting green. They had a good amount of break in them considering the amount of rainfall that the course had received in the previous 24 hours. I was pleased to realise that the putting green reflected the course greens too which is one of my pet hates is when they don't.

Having previously played the dukes a number of years back the first thing that struck me about this course was that it was a lot more open than the Dukes (and for what I know about the Duchess too) although the fairways were still lined for the majority by tall trees.

The first hole is a generous opener to lull you into a false sense of security before the course starts showing its teeth from the par-5 2nd hole where a tug will snooker you behind the pines and a loose one right will likely be gobbled up by the fairway bunkers. Should you miss them then you have some heavy rough to handle and make it impossible to approach in 2. As it happens for me with a reasonable drive and a 3 wood into a firm breeze I was still 50 yards short of the green. Should I have had the distance you have a crowned green which is protected front left and back right by bunkers and thick rough to a relatively small landing area.

 

  

Number 4 has a rather intimidating drive into a fairway flanked on both sides by trees and draws resemblance to the 17th at Augusta National with the now removed Eisenhower tree

Hole 7 was a definite favourite of mine despite the pathetic 9 I walked off the green with! Playing off the medal tees, at 200 yards is the first of five enormous fir trees that split the fairway. To the left of them is the correct line but very tight. Going right of the trees is the direct line but you must be long on your first and second shots, otherwise you have trouble. The second shot requires have a terrifying long iron or fairway wood to push it forward, however you are required to be extremely long to carry the 200 yards of thick rough and another 3 bunkers in the run up to the green, alternatively to draw the ball around the trees and back onto the fairway on the left. Should you be short or find the top of the trees off the tee, the fairway banks back toward the tee and what initially seems a good hit will end up at a meagre 200 yards!

 

Get your drive out the way and you are nowhere near done. The second is troublesome where the fairway narrows on the run up to the green to 20-30 yards across. Finally when on the short stuff you have a challenging putt on the heavily banked green where a putt within 10 feet is an excellent outcome. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hole 9 is in my opinion one of the most visually striking holes on the course. You hit your tee shot onto an elevated fairway on a plateau where a well-positioned shot leaves a beautiful approach to this green. Find yourself short in your approach and you will be in the ravine or collected by the two front bunkers. Such a beautiful hole on a summer’s day with the shrubs in full bloom (can't recall if they were azaleas or rhododendrons). 

 

The halfway house on the Marquess is the best halfway house I have ever visited. It is a beautiful two storey timber clad building boasting its own bar and plush seating areas with plenty of choices of food on offer. For those wanting to play the back 9 only there is a car park behind along with a small putting green. I thought it was a great touch. The house is set back into the trees whereby it merges into its surroundings nicely and doesn't intrude on the course experience. 

 

Hole 11, might like the first is an inviting open drive onto a large fairway.

 

 

 

Hole number 12 I found strange and completely out of character with the rest of the course whereby it featured water and is the shortest par-4. I can in some way understand why Sam Torrance once criticised it as it is almost unreachable off the tee and now so for Joe Average (off the medals). A definite risk / reward hole that as it happened on the day, I probably would have reached the green easily but the way I was playing I opted sensibly with a 3 wood that I almost ended up in trouble. Definitely a strategic hole to play where not thinking about your shot properly will find you in trouble. 

How I played on the day was incredibly up and down and while I hit some good shots, I was pushing a few around and completely fell apart at stages. For a 14 handicapper, having four 9's on the card was not a good day for me. It did not however damped my enjoyment of the day.

 

The Marquess is a wonderful course and fully deserving of its top 100 ranking although I think the only reason it is ranked so low in the list is due to the preference over links type courses from those who rank it. However it may be my bias to that view.

 

I signed off with a par at 18 and enjoyed a pint and a mean burger in the clubhouse – recommended.

 

Welcome to my top 100 blog!

I thought I would write a blog to explain why I wanted to blog my golfing chronicles whilst trying to play the top 100 courses in Great Britain and Ireland. I have been a keen golfer since the age of 15 and while for the majority of the my 15 years of golfing experience since has been regularly disturbed or stopped by my working life, the passion I have for a great golf course has only grown.

I live in Milton Keynes in Buckinghamshire and have done so for the majority of my life, I have been happily married for 4 years and now have a newborn daughter who I adore. My work in the construction industry takes me to a number of different locations around the country and is very demanding on time so weekends involve careful planning to ensure I fit in family, friends and golf!

For a number of years I have had a fight with my weight and health due to a simple love of food and a stressful working life leading to doing the wrong thing at the wrong time. After ballooning to an eye watering weight on the scales, I made the decision a couple of years ago that enough was enough and I needed to change my life. I took up running for weight loss and established a love for it so much so that as well as my golf I have run a half marathon, marathon and completed a full Tough Mudder course. This certainly improved my golf and further rekindled my passion for the beauty of the golf course.

The idea to play the top 100 courses came back in June 2012. I was taking part in the Macmillan Longest Golf Day challenge to raise money for the charity where you have to play 72 holes in a day. I was playing with 3 other friends and we had done a number of warm up 36 hole games back to back to ensure we had the right pace to make it round in time. This was a turning point in my golfing career because I was able to truly appreciate the love of a golf course in the freshness and stillness of 0530 in the morning. A time when no one is out other than the green staff and leaves you with your thoughts and you are able to properly take in your surroundings and appreciate the finer details of a course. It also gives you the opportunity to concentrate on your game and while slow play has never been an issue for me, speed play takes away all your negative swing thoughts and gets your head into thinking from one shot to the next.

Nick, Wade, Myself and Rob at the halfway stage of the Macmillan Longest Golf Day - 21st June 2012. Note: the buggies were for the bags, not the players!


After raising nearly £1700 for Macmillan Cancer support and completing the challenge on one of the wettest days of the year, my game was in good shape and so was I...kind of! My wife, mother-in-law and I had a week away down in Wadebridge in Cornwall and we get the chance to take in the sights. Being cheeky I managed to stash the clubs in the car and had scoped out some courses nearby that looked like a good track. I picked up the latest edition of Golf World and found within it an article about the 'Top 100 Courses In the World that you can play'. In there featured the course at no.49 called St. Enodoc. I was fortunate enough to be able to play that course which cemented my wish to do something, initially I wanted to play the top 100 in the world, but realism kicked in and I knew that was very unlikely to happen so I settled on the top 100 in GB&I.

And so I did some research and came up with my top 100 list. I looked at the course rankings from both Golf World, Golf Monthly and top100golfcourses.co.uk to compile my list.

There are a number of courses that are difficult and some impossible which I have omitted from my list, however they remain on the bottom which will be added at a later date should I be able to gain access to them. Additionally I added a few favourites.

Here is my list;

1.    Royal County Down – Championship

2.    Old Course, St Andrews Links

3.    Muirfield

4.    Royal Dornoch – Championship

5.    Royal Portrush – Dunluce

6.    Turnberry – Ailsa - PLAYED

7.    Ballybunion – Old

8.    Royal St George's

9.    Royal Birkdale

10.  Sunningdale – Old - PLAYED

11.  Carnoustie – Championship - PLAYED

12.  Kingsbarns

13.  Woodhall Spa – Hotchkin - PLAYED

14.  Lahinch – Old

15.  Royal Lytham & St Annes

16.  Portmarnock – Red & Blue

17.  Ganton - PLAYED

18.  Sunningdale – New - PLAYED

19.  Waterville

20.  Royal Troon – Old

21.  The European Club

22.  North Berwick

23.  Royal Porthcawl

24.  Royal Aberdeen – Balgownie

25.  Walton Heath – Old

26.  Royal Liverpool

27.  Cruden Bay

28.  Castle Stuart

29.  Saunton – East - PLAYED

30.  Wentworth – West

31.  Royal West Norfolk

32.  Nairn – Championship

33.  St Georges Hill – Red & Blue

34.  Gleneagles – King's

35.  Western Gailes

36.  Notts - PLAYED

37.  Machrihanish

38.  Prestwick

39.  St Enodoc – Church - PLAYED

40.  County Sligo

41.  Burnham & Berrow – Championship

42.  Royal Cinque Ports

43.  Tralee

44.  Royal St David's

45.  Formby

46.  County Loth

47.  Hillside

48.  Ballyliffin – Glashedy

49.  The Alwoodley

50.  Rosapenna – Sandy Hill

51.  Silloth On Solway

52.  West Sussex

53.  The Berkshire – Red

54.  The Castle Course, St Andrews Links

55.  Hunstanton

56.  Enniscrone

57.  Doonbeg

58.  Gullane – No.1

59.  Walton Heath – New

60.  The Island

61.  Carne

62.  Blairgowrie – Rosemount

63.  Aberdovey

64.  Dondonald

65.  The Berkshire – Blue

66.  Pennard

67.  Addington

68.  New Course, St Andrews Links - PLAYED

69.  Trevose – Championship

70.  The Belfry – Brabazon - PLAYED

71.  Adare Manor

72.  Worplesdon

73.  Portstewart (Strand)

74.  Hankley Common

75.  Woburn – Marquess - PLAYED

76.  Chart Hills

77.  Machrihanish Dunes

78.  West Hill

79.  Woking

80.  Gleneagles – Queen's

81.  Little Aston

82.  Celtic Manor - twenty ten

83.  Lindrick - PLAYED

84.  Panmure

85.  Wentworth – East

86.  Woburn – Duke's - PLAYED

87.  Bearwood Lakes

88.  St Andrews (Dukes)

89.  Trump International

90.  Royal North Devon

91.  St Mellion (Nicklaus)

92.  Moortown - PLAYED

93.  Southport & Ainsdale

94.  Sherwood Forest - PLAYED

95.  The Grove

96.  Turnberry (Kintyre)

97.  Gleneagles (PGA Centenary)

98.  Gullane - No.2 - PLAYED

99.  Saunton - West

100.               Woburn Duchess'

 

The next few courses on the list to additionally target;

101.               West Lancashire

102.               Remedy Oak

103.               Aldeburgh

104.               Liphook

105.               Royal Ashdown Forest

106.               Delamere Forest

107.               Parkstone

108.               Seacroft

109.               Goodwood Downs

110.               East Devon

111.               Southerness

112.               Ladybank

113.               Brora

114.               Nefyn & District – Old

115.               Ballyliffin – Old

116.               K Club - Palmer Ryder Cup

117.               Killarney – Killeen

118.               Portmarnock Links

119.               The Belfry - PGA National - PLAYED

 

Courses with limited / no access;

1.    Loch Lomond

2.    Swinley Forrest

3.    Rye - Old

4.    Queenwood

5.    Machrie

6.    Mount Juliet

7.    Druids Glen

8.    Old Head

9.    New Zealand

10.  Lough Erne

11.  Donegal

12.  Broadstone

13.  Renaissance

14.  Centurion Club

That is enough for now. I will blog further to set out my scoring and how I intend to chronicle my quest.